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Talk about a long and hot summer, but we did it! The first year for House of Marley sponsoring a stage at the Vans Warped Tour is now complete. I know I speak for everyone at HOM when I say we loved having our own stage to share the mission of Marley with each and every one of you!

Having said that, this will be my final blog from the road. Today I’m writing from the Portland airport before flying home to southern California. It feels so good to be back on the best coast – oops, I mean west coast.

Yesterday was actually my first full day off in two months. I slept in, and then went with a few friends to a beautiful “lazy” river in the Oregon mountains. I was told not to tell anyone where it is because it’s a “locals only” spot, but next time you’re in the Pacific Northwest, keep your eyes peeled for “Sandy Beach” off the Columbia River.

Anyway, back to the tour… If I had to pick the ten best shows we had this summer, it would have to be Denver, San Francisco, Ventura, Cuyahoga Falls, Tinley Park, Mansfield, St. Petersburg, and Milwaukee. I mean, all the shows were amazing in their own way, but these will be the shows that I will personally remember the most.

Before I sign off, I just want to give a huge shout-out to all the bands, crew, and fans that made the House of Marley stage a reality every day on the 2012 Vans Warped Tour.

As a proper farewell, I’ve put together a little parting gift for you all: a playlist of my favorite songs from the House of Marley stage at the 2012 Vans Warped Tour. Until next year, my friends….

Now that the 2012 Vans Warped Tour is officially in the books, and my summer running the House of Marley stage has come to an end, I wanted to give these tour recaps the finale they deserve. That’s coming up later this week.

In the meantime, check out this 2012 Vans Warped Tour breakdown, a friendly list of dos and don’ts for next year’s Vans Warped Tour, and a collection of awesome #LiveMarley fan photos.

-Chris Hurley

2012 Vans Warped Tour Statistics

Number of Shows – 41 Shows in 51 DaysNumber of Bands that Played – 250+Number of Stages – 7Number of Volunteers – 16,700Total Miles Driven – 16,000Gallons of Biodiesel Used – 95,000Meals Served in Catering – 82,000Cups of Coffee Served – 18,000Cases of Beer Served – 3,500Cans of Monster Water Given Away – 212,544Cans of Food Donated to Feed Our Children – 198,700Total Charitable Cash Donations Made - $276,750Pounds of Recycling Collected – 35,000Number of Major Rainstorms Experienced – 3High Temperature – 116 Degrees (Phoenix)

DOS & DONTS FOR NEXT YEAR’S VANS WARPED TOUR

Do

–Bring a smile and a positive attitude. Remember, you are at the Warped Tour!
–Drink A LOT of water. No one can have fun dehydrated in the hot summer sun.
–Eat lots of healthy snacks! They’re delicious and they’ll fuel you through the day.
–Wear clothes you are willing to maybe never wear again. Prepare to get hot, sweaty, and dirty!
–Watch at least one band from each of the seven stages. The Vans Warped Tour is set up for you to see all your favorite bands, but also be exposed to dozens of other bands. You never know when you’ll discover your new favorite band. Explore a bit. You won’t be disappointed.

Don’t

–Litter. There are more trash cans and recycling bins than there are bands on the Warped Tour. So use ‘em.
–Get so intoxicated that you forget where you parked your car! Believe it or not, we saw people with this problem at every single show.
–Steal! Vans Warped Tour is all about giving, but don’t steal from us. The bands and sponsors give away so many cool things that we were probably going to hook you up in the first place.
–Throw things on the stage (unless its your bra or underwear).
–Forget to come say hi to me and the rest of the House of Marley team at next summer’s Vans Warped Tour!!

With a 1955 VW Marley bus stocked with Marley headphones and a summer’s worth of sunscreen, the House of Marley’s Chris Hurley will be giving us a behind-the-scenes look at life On the Road with the 2012 Vans Warped Tour.

WEEK 3

June 30 • San Antonio, TX

Greetings friends. I’m writing from San Antonio today. It’s my first time here. Unfortunately, it’s been raining on and off all day, which kind of threw a curve ball at everyone. Luckily, today’s lineup on the House of Marley stage is going to start off big to make up for the less than desirable weather. We have T. Mills, G-Eazy, and Mod Sun to kick things off, followed by reggae-rock favorites, Tomorrow’s Bad Seeds and Ballyhoo!
What makes the House of Marley stage unique compared to the six other stages on the 2012 Vans Warped Tour is our super diverse artist line-up. Sure, we have rock bands, but we also have hip hop, reggae and funk bands too, which is a change or pace a lot of concertgoers seem to enjoy, rather than dealing with non-stop mosh pits all day. Variety is the spice of life, right?

G-Eazy lighting up the HOM stage with moral support from Mod Sun and T. Mills.

July 1 • Houston, TX

They say everything’s bigger in Texas, and I’m starting to believe them. The line outside the venue today is HUGE.
As we continue moving south, I find myself getting particularly enthusiastic about The Constellations. They’re from Atlanta, and they add a refreshing blend of soul, blues and rock ‘n’ roll to the House of Marley stage each day. Nobody else on the 2012 Vans Warped Tour sounds like these guys. Looking forward to seeing them in front today’s colossal crowd. Come on Houston, show the House of Marley some love!

Finding southern comfort in The Constellations.

July 3 • Dallas, TX

Another hot and humid day here in Texas! Craig, Taylor and I are well-rested after our day off yesterday. Especially Craig and I. That’s ’cause we slept right through bus call this morning when our hotel failed to place our wake up call. Oops. Luckily, the venue was less than 20 minutes away, so we hopped in the first cab we could find and got dropped off near the backstage entrance without missing much of the action.

Craig after we missed bus call in Dallas.

July 5 • Maryland Heights, MO

Woke up early for a tour managers meeting this morning at the 2012 Vans Warped Tour production office in St. Louis. By 7:45 it was already 99 degrees. I feel like I just got out of the shower and can’t dry off. I hope Missouri girls like California boys, ’cause Craig and I will be rocking board shorts and flip flops all day! Anything else would be inhumane in this heat.
On a more fun note, today we welcome a new band joining us on the House of Marley stage. Meet Emily’s Army.
Emily’s Army is a group on young skateboarders and surfers from Northern California that plays an original mix of punk, garage, and ska. They hit the stage in 20 minutes, so I’m going to go check them out. You should too.

Emily’s Army know how to make a first impression.

July 6 • Auburn Hills, MI

We’re kicking today off with style. Seattle’s finest hip hop duo, Champagne Champagne are opening up the House of Marley stage. Every day the HOM bands draw to determine the set order, which is cool and keeps things interesting each day. And also, all the more reason to get to the shows on time! You never know when your favorite band is going to hit the HOM stage.
In other news, we’ve been looking forward to today’s show for quite some time. Craig, Taylor and I will be getting a lot of extra help and support from a lot of awesome people. The House of Marley’s home headquarters are located just a half hour away from the show today, so a large portion of the HOM team will be in full effect at the Auburn Hills stop of the 2012 Vans Warped Tour!
And as long as we’re on the subject of the team, the House of Marley is always on the lookout for more street soldiers. If you think you have what it takes to join our ranks, follow us on Twitter @houseofmarley and tell us how you #LiveMarley!

With a 1955 VW Marley bus stocked with Marley headphones and a summer’s worth of sunscreen, the House of Marley’s Chris Hurley will be giving us a behind-the-scenes look at life On the Road with the 2012 Vans Warped Tour.

WEEK 2

June 23 • San Francisco, CA

Hello San Francisco! What a beautiful city, and what a beautiful day. Today’s show is already sold out (20,000 tickets sold)! That means we’re gonna be busy. Yesterday we sold more earbud headphones than any other day on the tour. Hopefully we can keep that momentum moving today. With the capacity crowd and this awesome weather, I think we can.

Doin’ work.

June 24 • Ventura, CA

Today, the 2012 Vans Warped Tour stops in Ventura, California, just south of Santa Barbara. The venue today is probably going to be one of the most scenic we see this summer. The House of Marley stage is facing directly toward the Pacific Ocean and the Santa Cruz Islands.
Later today, Mod Sun will be on the HOM stage with a very special guest: Cisco Adler from Shwayze. Another great day of music and another great day to spread the word about #LiveMarley and all the amazing things we’re doing at the House of Marley!

Mod Sun with Cisco Adler on the House of Marley stage.

June 27 • Chula Vista, CA

Today is our last day in California. We’re in Chula Vista, which is about ten miles off the Mexican border.
It’s such a beautiful day, we better enjoy it while it lasts. Starting tomorrow, we head east into Arizona, New Mexico and Texas, all of which will be unreasonably hot, I’m sure. Speaking of which, I’m currently writing this from the air-conditioned comforts of the tour bus we share with a few other sponsors. I’m going to soak up as much of this as I can before we hit the triple digit temperatures of the Southwest.
At 4:45, New Found Glory will be coming by the Marley tent to hangout and sign stuff for their fans. Great band, great guys, great day to visit the House of Marley on the 2012 Vans Warped Tour!

Our new friends in New Found Glory, meeting fans at the House of Marley tent.

June 28 • Glendale, AZ

I’m feeling hot, hot, HOT! It’s 8:35 am and it’s already 95 degrees outside! We are being warned that temperatures could reach as high as 110 degrees. The kids coming today must really love these bands, because these weather conditions are in no way enjoyable.
One “cool” thing that did happy this morning was stumbled upon a video blog from the 2012 Vans Warped Tour band, We The Kings. Yesterday in Chula Vista, Charles and Danny from We The Kings came by to hangout at the VW Marley bus. They were so ecstatic about the Marley headphones and our values of being Earth-friendly and sustainable that they picked up a couple pairs of Zion and Conquerorin-ear headphones. And as I mentioned, they even gave us a nice shout-out in their video blog, Internet Killed TV. Check it out below!

June 29 • Las Cruces, NM

Today, the 2012 Vans Warped Tour is making a stop in Las Cruces, home of New Mexico State University. We’re bracing for another hot day, but it shouldn’t be nearly as intense as yesterday in Arizona. That’s good because my House of Marley tourmates, Taylor and Craig have been working out here nonstop so far today. Seems like New Mexico has a lot of love for Marley! Taylor’s been taking some awesome pics of all our new friends, and Craig has been hooking everybody up with the Marley in-ear headphones. And lest we forget the bands on the House of Marley stage are killing it, day in and day out, regardless of the heat! Can’t stop, won’t stop.

When the House of Marley was invited to host a stage at the 2012 Vans Warped Tour, we were thrilled about the prospect of sharing our message, our products, and some of our favorite artists with audiences across North America. With a stocked 1955 Volkswagon Marley bus full of swag, Marley headphones, and a summer’s worth of sunscreen, the House of Marley team will be out in full-force at every date of the 2012 Vans Warped Tour, meeting fans, doing product demos and teaching kids everywhere what it means to live #LiveMarley.

Along the way, the House of Marley’s tour manager, Chris Hurley will be capturing the excitement in a series of backstage blogs, photos, and videos from the 2012 Vans Warped Tour. The first installment: coming to you right now.

WEEK 1

June 15 • Huntington Beach, CA

Hello.
My name is Chris Hurley. I am 25-years-old, from Huntington Beach, California, and I’m the House of Marley’s tour manager for the 2012 Vans Warped Tour! I just finished packing my bags for what promises to be a long and memorable road trip, kicking off tomorrow in Salt Lake City.
Joining me on the journey are Craig Jarvis and Taylor Miller. Collectively, we couldn’t be more excited about representing HOM on the 2012 Vans Warped Tour, and I can’t wait to share our stories. Buckle up.

That’s me.

June 16 • Salt Lake City, UT

Today we are in Salt Lake City for day one, and WOW! Talk about a huge production. There are seven stages and almost one hundred bands on the 2012 Vans Warped Tour. So cool that the House of Marley is one of those seven stages.
In addition to having our own stage, we also brought along our 1955 Volkswagon Marley bus. From the bus, we get to sell Marley headphones and interact with 15,000 concert-goers on a daily basis. Believe me when I say our stage, our van, and our products turn heads immediately. We definitely have the coolest, most eye-catching setup if I do say so myself!

The ’55 VW Marley bus!

June 17 • Denver, CO

Glad to say we made it to day two. We almost didn’t. Whewwww…
Last night, we were getting ready to load the Marley bus onto the trailer for the overnight drive to Denver. You see, the Marley bus is 57-years-old and dropped so low, it passes for a low rider. The ramps on the trailer were less than four feet long, so trying to get our bus up and onto the trailer was almost impossible. It just kept bottoming out. We must have had 20 different people helping us push, pull and lift the Marley bus.
After about an hour of hard work and creative thinking, we finally got it onto the trailer and strapped down safely for the trek to Denver. It was really encouraging to see so many people help us out considering we are the tour rookies. But then again, who wouldn’t help out a ’55 VW bus in need?

June 20 • Las Vegas, NV

Not sure if this happens every year, but whoever organized the 2012 Vans Warped Tour made sure to schedule two days off in Vegas! Think its a good idea to have a hundred bands and sponsors spend two days in Sin City? We sure did!
We stayed at the Luxor, went out to dinner, played a little Blackjack, hit the gym and spa, then took in the sights and sounds of the strip, saving a little time to rest up for our big day today. Now it’s 100 degrees of pure desert heat. 12 hour days in conditions like these can sometimes be tough, but luckily for us we have plenty of water and amazing hip hop and reggae artists to get us through the day!

Back to work!

June 21 • Irvine, CA

We are back in Cali! Craig, Taylor and I all currently live in Southern California, so it’s nice that the 2012 Vans Warped Tour is already bringing us back home. We all have a lot of great friends coming to today’s show in Irvine, and we get to enjoy the cool Pacific Ocean breeze. A welcome substitute for yesterday’s desert heat.
Today on the House of Marley stage I’m most looking forward to Hawaiian reggae band, The Green and hip hop artist and Riverside, California’s own T. Mills. Both artists have strong followings here in SoCal. Gonna be dope!

T. Mills running the House of Marley stage.

June 22 • Pomona, CA

On our way to Pomona! Team Marley is definitely making our presence known here on the 2012 Vans Warped Tour. More and more bands are coming up to us asking about Marley headphones. What is House of Marley? How are Marley headphones Earth friendly? What is 1Love.org? These are all questions we receive every day from some of our favorite bands. In the first week alone I’ve been able to talk Marley headphones with Tomorrow’s Bad Seeds, The Used, New Found Glory, Taking Back Sunday, Anti-Flag, G-Eazy and more. It’s amazing! I have yet to come across a single person who can’t appreciate something about Marley headphones. There is always something about House of Marley for people to relate to and appreciate, and I’m proud to be able to share this stuff with bands I admire and great people at every stop of the tour!